7/7/2005 Baltimore, MD press release Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center JOHNS HOPKINS SCIENTISTS UNCOVER CLUES TO “DISAPPEARING” PRECANCERS May provide better targets for cervical cancer vaccine development New research sheds light on why cervical precancers disappear in some women and not in others. Scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center report July 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Reseach that the reason many of these lesions persist is an unlikely mix of human papilloma virus (HPV) strain and a woman’s individual immune system. For decades, scientists have known that HPV causes nearly all cases of cancer in the neck of the womb. Most sexually active women – some reports say up to 80 percent – are exposed to HPV and more than half of these women are infected with strains of the virus that could likely turn a precancerous lesion to cancer. But only a small percentage of precancers progress to full-blown cancer, a process that takes years. To find out why, gynecologic oncologist Cornelia Trimble, M.D., closely monitored 100 women with high-grade, precancerous cervical lesions before standard surgery to remove the abnormal tissue. Some of the lesions – about 28 percent -- regressed by themselves before surgery within a time period considered within the bounds of care standards. But among patients whose pre-cancers lingered, Trimble discovered that women were three times less likely to resolve their lesions if they carried a certain immune system gene and did not have HPV16, the most common strain of the virus. Trimble was [...]

7/7/2005 Boston, MA press release The Forsyth Institute Scientists at the Forsyth Institute have found that three bacterial species are associated with the most common form of oral cancer - a discovery the researchers hope will lead to a simple diagnostic test for the often-fatal disease. The findings also open the question of whether bacteria might, in some way, play a causal role. The current discovery, reported in the July 7 Journal of Translational Medicine, suggests that elevated levels of three particular bacteria in saliva indicate the presence of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC)˜one of the deadliest of cancers because it often goes undetected in its early stages. "Finding bacteria associated with OSCC encourages us to hope that we have discovered an early diagnostic marker for the disease," said Donna Mager, DDS, PhD., Assistant Member of the Staff in the Department of Periodontology and Molecular Genetics and the principal investigator. "If future studies bear this out, it may be possible to save lives by conducting large-scale screenings using saliva samples." The Forsyth scientists posit that oral cancer may change the oral ecology, thus allowing certain bacteria to colonize more rapidly than others. However, according to J. Max Goodson, DDS, PhD., Director of Clinical Research at Forsyth and a co-author of the study, "We cannot rule out the possibly that the bacteria themselves may be causally involved in the development of the disease." (Other bacteria, such as H. pylori, for example, have been implicated in augmenting the development of certain cancers). [...]

7/6/2005 Minneapolis, MN Jerret Raffety Minneapolis Daily (mndaily.com) Victims of disfiguring oral and facial injuries and medical conditions are finding some relief in Moos Tower, thanks to work being done in the University’s Maxillofacial Prosthodontics Clinic. Dr. Beth Brosky, a professor at the University’s School of Dentistry, said her work, maxillofacial prosthodontics, helps restore the quality of life for numerous victims of disfiguring conditions by reproducing damaged and missing parts of the interior and exterior of the mouth and face. Parts of the face commonly replaced by a maxillofacial prosthodontist can include eyes, ears, noses, teeth and parts of the jaw. Brosky said she sees approximately 50 to 70 patients every year. The most common causes of disfigurement are cleft palate, head and neck cancer, birth defects, and traumas such as self-inflicted injuries and automobile accidents, she said. Her patients typically come from all around Minnesota and the upper Midwest, but she said she has helped people from as far away as India. Brosky said victims of oral and facial disfigurement often become recluses, deteriorating their quality of life. “Sometimes family members won’t come to visit (patients) because they’re so grossly disfigured. Health-care workers have said they’re afraid to go into patients’ rooms,” Brosky said. “The prosthesis allows patients more interaction — they get people out of the house to get them to socialize more.” Dr. Patrick Lloyd, dean of the School of Dentistry, said maxillofacial prosthodontics are also used for creating devices that make swallowing, breathing and speaking easier [...]

7/6/2005 Taiwan Shu-Hang Ng, MD et al. Journal of Nuclear Medicine Vol. 46 No. 7 1136-1143 Accurate evaluation of primary tumors and cervical lymph node status of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the oral cavity is important to treatment planning and prognosis prediction. In this prospective study, we evaluated the use of 18F-FDG PET, CT/MRI, and their visual correlation for the identification of primary tumors and cervical nodal metastases of SCC of the oral cavity with histologic correlation. Methods: One hundred twenty-four patients with pathologically proven diagnoses of oral cavity SCC underwent 18F-FDG PET and CT/MRI within 2 wk before surgery. We interpreted 18F-FDG PET, CT/MRI, and visually correlated 18F-FDG PET and CT/MRI separately to assess the primary tumors and their regional lymph node status. We recorded lymph node metastases according to the neck level system of imaging-based nodal classification. Histopathologic analysis was used as the gold standard for assessment of the primary tumors and lymph node involvement. We analyzed differences in sensitivity and specificity among the imaging modalities using the McNemar test. The receiver-operating-characteristic (ROC) curve and calculation of the area under the curve were used to evaluate their discriminative power. Results: The accuracy of 18F-FDG PET, CT/MRI, and their visual correlation for the identification of primary tumors was 98.4%, 87.1%, and 99.2%, respectively. The sensitivity of 18F-FDG PET for the identification of nodal metastases on a level-by-level basis was 22.1% higher than that of CT/MRI (74.7% vs. 52.6%, P < 0.001), whereas the specificity of 18F-FDG PET was [...]

7/4/2005 Rochester, NY Medical News Editor Medical News Today (www.medicalnewstoday.com) The European Patent Office has awarded the patent for a technology that is proving to be key to efforts to protect women against cervical cancer to a team of scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center. The office has awarded a patent to the University for the work performed by a trio of virologists - Robert Rose, Ph.D., William Bonnez, M.D., and Richard Reichman, M.D. - for creating a way to protect the body against human papillomaviruses (HPV), which cause cervical cancer in women. The University's technology is a key element of two vaccines that are now in the final stages of testing in people. Earlier this year the two companies developing vaccines, Merck and Co. and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), along with the University and several other parties agreed on a settlement involving patents and royalties related to the vaccines, clearing the way for continued development of their products. Both vaccines, which are given as a series of three shots, are being studied in tens of thousands of women. While there are more than 100 types of HPV, and more than three dozen cause sexually transmitted diseases, a handful can lead to cervical cancer, which kills more than 250,000 women around the globe every year. More than a decade ago the Rochester team created virus-like particles (VLPs) that are harmless but which mimic real HPV viruses, triggering an immune response in people that wards off infection by HPV. The team [...]

7/2/2005 Israel Barry Knishkowy, MD, MPH and Yona Amitai, MD, MPH PEDIATRICS Vol. 116 No. 1 July 2005, pp. e113-e119 Narghile, or water-pipe smoking (WPS), has been practiced extensively for 400 years. It is common in the Arabian Peninsula, Turkey, India, Pakistan, and other countries. In recent years, there has been a revival of WPS, notably among youth. Most US health professionals are unfamiliar with the practice and health consequences of WPS. Therefore, this trend presents a new challenge for adolescent health care providers. The composition of the tobacco used in WPS is variable and not well standardized. Studies that have examined narghile smokers and the aerosol of narghile smoke have reported high concentrations of carbon monoxide, nicotine, "tar," and heavy metals. These concentrations were as high or higher than those among cigarette smokers. The few scientific data regarding the adverse health consequences of WPS point to dangers that are similar to those associated with cigarette smoking: malignancy, impaired pulmonary function, low birth weight, and others. Additional dangers not encountered with cigarette smoking are infectious diseases resulting from pipe sharing and the frequent addition of alcohol or psychoactive drugs to the tobacco. Public health strategies for controlling the emerging epidemic of WPS include carrying out epidemiologic and toxicologic research; implementation of laws to limit acquisition and use; and health education, targeting adolescents in particular.

7/1/2005 Houston, TX Waun Ki Hong, M.D. & Edward Kim, M.D. MD Anderson's CancerWise (www.cancerwise.org) For decades, scientists have increasingly explored the possibilities of preventing cancer. This field of study, known as “chemoprevention,” involves the use of agents such as aspirin and aspirin-like drugs, as well as foodstuffs like green tea, spices and vitamins. A number of recent large-scale chemoprevention trials throughout the world have failed, however, challenging the value of such studies. Two M. D. Anderson scientists commented in a recent issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute that although a great amount of work needs to be done to improve design and development of chemoprevention trials, there is no need to give up hope. Defining the road ahead in improving future trials “The field of chemoprevention still remains an exciting area of research, yet many challenges are ahead,” write Waun Ki Hong, M.D., head of the Division of Cancer Medicine, and Edward Kim, M.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Thoracic/Head & Neck Medical Oncology. Hong and Kim say that many of the failed chemoprevention studies were unsuccessful because researchers had not yet established risk models that can best define which patients will be helped by chemoprevention. Chemoprevention trials are “large, time-consuming and expensive,” they write. In order for them to serve patients best, scientists need to establish a set of criteria that includes biomarkers, genetic signposts that can predict which agents will work, to prevent a second or even a first cancer from developing. [...]

7/1/2005 Houston, TX staff report MD Anderson's CancerWise (www.cancerwise.org) Brushing your teeth – it’s something you do every day, but have you ever looked beyond your teeth to see what else is back there? You and your dentist are the best defense against oral cancer. “Your dentist is in a unique position to not only screen the oral cavity, but also the head and neck areas, checking for abnormal nodes or lumps, and tissue and skin changes that may indicate cancer or an infection,” says Bela Toth, D.D.S., professor in M. D. Anderson’s Department of Head and Neck Surgery. The most common cancer in the mouth, Toth says, is a squamous cell carcinoma. Premalignant lesions occurring in the lining of the mouth also are frequently seen. They may appear as white, thickened areas or as a red patch. Tips for examining the inside of your mouth Since detecting cancer in its earliest stages affords a better chance for survival, a thorough oral and head and neck screening should be part of a routine dental examination. What can you do between dental visits to ensure good oral health? Using a mirror, look for anything unusual while examining your lips, teeth, gums, tongue and cheeks. If you notice any of the following signs, contact your physician. These may indicate cancer or some other underlying problem: Lip or mouth sore that doesn’t heal within two weeks Lump in the mouth Lump elsewhere, such as the face, jawbone and neck White/red patch on the [...]

6/29/2005 Augusta, Georgia staff report News-Medical.net (www.news-medical.net) A harmonic scalpel that uses ultrasound to coagulate as it cuts can reduce blood loss and postoperative facial paralysis in patients who need a portion of their salivary gland removed, surgeons say. Infection of the sponge-like parotid gland is uncomfortable but temporary, says Dr. Christine G. Gourin, otolaryngologist at the Medical College of Georgia. But when the gland develops cancerous or benign tumors or stones that interfere with saliva flow, a rather tricky surgery to remove part or all of the gland is needed. Surgical removal is delicate because the parotid sits between the cheekbone and jawbone and the facial nerve runs right through it, Dr. Gourin says of the gland which contributes a watery fluid to the saliva mix that helps lubricate the mouth and tongue and digest food. The standard approach is making an incision in a skin fold in front of the ear that runs back into the hairline - the same as for a facelift - then using surgical scissors to remove the gland and surgical ties or electrocautery to stop bleeding. A small pilot study published in Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery in 2004 described how the harmonic scalpel could reduce operative time and blood loss in patients who had benign disease and needed only a portion of their gland removed. The new expanded study, published in the June issue of Laryngoscope, compared a larger mix of patients: 41 patients who underwent conventional surgery and 44 who [...]

6/29/2005 Scranton, PA Jeff Sonderman The Times Tribune Cancer researchers are always fighting a battle on two fronts: finding treatments that work while limiting the debilitating side effects. Doctors at the Northeast Radiation Oncology Center in Dunmore are testing a method that may do both. The new treatment ­— radioimmunotherapy — goes by the less tongue-tying nickname “liquid radiation.” It uses the body’s immune system to fight non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the sixth-most-common cancer in the United States. About a half-dozen people in Northeastern Pennsylvania have gotten this treatment in the past six months at NROC, which was created in October 2003 as a partnership between four cancer doctors and Mercy Hospital in Scranton. Clinical trials nationwide have shown that as many as eight of every 10 lymphoma patients are responsive to the treatment. Liquid radiation uses tiny radioactive particles attached to antibodies that target cancerous cells. When the antibody arrives, the particle then penetrates and kills that specific cancer cell, leaving other healthy cells undamaged. This allows effective treatment with little or no pain or side effects. “The problem with traditional chemotherapy is it gives you a lot of side effects,” said Chi K. Tsang, M.D., one of the four oncologists at the Northeast Radiation Oncology Center. “(Liquid radiation, however,) goes after where the cancer is, and only the cancer.” Patients get several diagnostic scans before the treatment, and report for blood tests in the weeks or months afterward. The injection itself takes only about 10 minutes from an IV needle, [...]